"Rail Tracks" Tour Diary #2

Just got back from a little sightseeing tour in a town called Bury St Edmunds. The last Anglo-Saxon king, King Edmund, was buried there. It has become the spiritual center of East Anglia afterwards. 

Furthermore, Bury has the world's smallest pub. I couldn't resist in having a pint in there... When we entered, someone joked "Sorry, we're overcrowded!" 5 people were sitting inside. I asked the bartender about the capacity of the pub. He said it would be packed with 30 people. To be honest, I would not want to be in there with 29 people - well, at least it might inspire me to write a new song called "Overcrowded Room".   Most people think of London when hearing England, but, even though I'm a huge fan of London, I fell in love with these small towns. I went to a town called Bungay (also in Suffolk) last summer, as a friend of mine recommended me to go there. These towns have a completely different spirit than big towns like London or Manchester. What I also like is that there are always a lot of tales about certain buildings. For example the Black Dog, also known as "Devil Dog" in Bungay. I just googled it again and the first page that appears on Google when you type in "Black Dog in Bungay" is the "Bungay Black Dog Running Club"... Nearly every shop there is called "Black Dog" or similar. If you are in Suffolk, it's definitely worth checking out some small towns.

I hope you are not annoyed by everything I post on Facebook at the moment, but so much is happening here. Before I had left Switzerland, I put some new music on my I-Phone in case I don't know what to do - didn't have a chance to listen to it yet though. I love discovering new music and also re-discovering stuff I listened to some years ago. I was asked in Steve Hicks' radio show yesterday about the first CD I bought. I used to listen to classical music when I was a child - especially operas. My favourite composers were Verdi and Puccini. Last November I went to see Verdi's Rigoletto at Scala di Milano - still an incredible piece of music!! But the first CD I bought was probably the soundtrack of Titanic. Right before I left Switzerland, I had discovered Grandmaster Flash. He was a pioneer in old school HipHop. Will check out some more of his stuff soon. Five years ago I couldn't imagine that I would listen to HipHop sometime - but I do now. I had a chat with a radio presenter about "good music" yesterday. He said: "Good music is ... just good music!"

I had my first interview for BBC Radio today. Sophie, my promoter, and I were interviewed by Stephen Foster who promoted the ICR Charity Concert and also my forthcoming album "Rail Tracks". I'm really looking forward to the concert on Saturday. We're playing in a club called "Steamboat". You might know that I am a big fan of steam boats - what a coincidence!! I have the honour to share the stage with two wonderful female voices: Reb Capper and Chasing Storms. You really should check them out!

After four very busy days, I'm enjoying an evening off with good company, good movies and some drinks...

It's the first time I post pictures in my blog.. Hope it works.

Hasta la Vista! Gion x